Black Men In America

February 28, 1990

Nearly one in four young black men is in jail, on parole or on probation. That staggering finding comes from the Sentencing Project, an advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., and it represents the first comprehensive estimate of the number of young black men under the purview of the nation's courts.

In comparison, researchers found that among the same age groups, one in 16 white males and one in 10 Hispanic males are under the supervision of the criminal justice system. The findings "should be disturbing to all Americans," said Marc Mauer, the study's author. "We now risk the possibility of writing off an entire generation of black men from leading productive lives."

Part of the problem, of course, is that many young black men in America are not on any track leading to productive lives. Instead, what they expect - all they can expect - is to lead dead-end lives. And given their situation - poor, uneducated, with no job skills and no hope of acquiring any - their expectations are not unrealistic. Many such young men have been written off by society well before they enter the criminal justice system.

And while all people - black and white - must bear responsibility for their behavior, people do not exist in a vacuum, either. Is it any surprise thatthe hopeless turn to crime? Consider what a young white man turned law-breaker gives up. Then, consider what a black man who turns to crime gives up.

Who is likely to have the brighter future? And who is likely to feel alienated from society, separated from the world portrayed on television, in movies and in magazines?

In America in 1986, according to the study, more young black men were under court supervision than were in college. Couple that statistic with others reflecting the deterioration of the black family, teen pregnancy rates, unemployment and numerous similar indicators, and then consider this: Unless we start reversing some of those figures, we are in danger of writing off not just a single generation of black men, but many generations of black people.